Prefabricated house construction



Oct. 28, 1941. w VAN ALEN 2,260,353

PRE'FABRICATED HOUSE CONSTRUCTION Filed May 10, 1938 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR WILL/AM VAN AL BY fig ATT NEY Oct. 28, 1941. w. VAN ALEN 2,

PREFABRICATED HOUSE CONSTRUCTION Filed May 10, 1938 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR WILL/AM N A1.

Oct. 28, 1941. w. VAN ALEN PREFABRICATED HOUSE CONSTRUCTION Filed May 10, 1958 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 QLN ON QMN .NN M 0m m t S Q G B Q 7 mv l Q m R m H 8 I n r H u Q0 mv g N INVENTOR VA% LEN A RNEY Oct. 28, 1941.

W. VAN ALEN PREFABRICATED HOUSE CONSTRUCTION Filed May 10, 1938 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 N! R Y omfa m WM m V w m A R. .5 i

Oct. 28, 1941. w. VAN ALEN 2,260,353

PREFABRICATED HOUSE CONSTRUCTION Filed May 10, 1938 I 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR W/LL/ VAN EN 1 ATTO NEY Patented 28, 1941 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE- azeosrls' 22 Claims.

The present invention relates to a pre-fabrlcated house construction and it particularly relates to a pre fabricated house construction, the skeleton of which may be primarily made of preformed sheet metal elements.

Itis among the objects of the present invention to provide a pre-fabricated house construc.- tion which is readily adaptable for the construction of dwellings, garages and other buildings, the component units of which may be readily fabricated at a central point and shipped to a place of erection and there readily assembled at low labor cost to form a house, garage or other building of any desirable plan or appearance.

Another object is to provide a pre-fabricated house construction, component parts of which may be standardized and readily manufactured at low cost, and, which, at the same time, will permit of the erection of buildings, garages and homes of widely varying designs and characteristics in accordance with the desires of the purchaser, builder and/or architect.

Another object is to provide a pre-fabricated house construction of fabricated metal, which will be strong and durable, and, which, at the' same time, will have high heat insulating qualities, have an appearance as attractive as homes of stone or brick and, which most readily lends itself to modern electrical wiring arrangements and plumbing systems and'to the installation of all other modern conveniences.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a pre-fabricated house construction, which, although made of relatively thin sheet metal units, will have the, solidity and appearan'ce of a masonry or stone dwelling or building without any of the undesirable effects and characteristics usually associated with metallic structures.

Other objects will be obvious or will appear during the course of the following specification.

In accomplishing the above objects it has been found most suitable to form the exterior.

walls, the doors and the roof of a plurality of pans, which may be of standard sizes or sections and which are suitably provided with attachment flanges. Said pans may be readily rolled and formed at a steel mill to desired thicknesses and sizes. The exteriorwall pans are generally provided with inturned side flanges, while the floor pans ar generally provided with upturned side flanges from each edge thereof, which side flanges in part or whole in turn are provided with inturned flanges.

Preferably held together by clips or studs of T or modified 2 cross section, which in combination with bolts may hold the exterior wall structure rigidly together. At the same time the interior wall panels are mounted upon the inside faces of said stud clamps.

The exterior walls may be covered or coated by successive or alternate sprays of cellulose I esters and/or varnishes containing resins,'var-- nishes and of marble dust, while the spaces between the exterior walls and the interior walls may be filled with expanded vermiculite.

The flashing is preferably provided with means to include and extend over the top of the wall pans, and over the top of the roof pans which are positioned at the top of the structure, which roof pans are of the same construction as the floor pans.

In the drawings, which show several of the various possible embodiments according to the present invention by way of illustration and not by way of limitation, since many changes and variations may be made all within the scope of the present invention:

Figs. 1, 2 and 3 are diagrammatic elevational views of the side, front and back of a house structure constructed according to the present invention, which structure may be considerably varied in design and appearance byvariation in location and positioning of the wall pans and other structural parts, these views merely serving as a base from which the various sections may be taken.

Fig. 4 is a cross sectional view upon the line 35 4-4 of Fig. 1 upon a somewhat enlarged scale as compared to Fig. 1, showing a construction which may be applied 'to a one-story house, or just as readily to a two or three-story house or building, the structure being partly broken away to permit a more compact showing,

Fig. 5 is a transverse sectional view upon the line 5-5 of Fig. 4 with the floor removed showingv the top of the floor pan construction and the exterior wall pans and also the interior walls, 45 Fig. 6 is a fragmentary transverse sectional view uponthe line, 66 of Fig. 5,

Fig. '7 is a top perspective view upon areduced scale as comparedto Figs. 4 to 6 of a floor pan uni Fig. 8 is a separated sideview upon an enlarged scale as compared to Figs. 4 to 5. showgigda hook bolt construction which maybe utize Fig. 9 is a fragmentary transverse sectional The adjacent flanges of the wall pans are view upon the line 9-"8 of Fig. 4 showing the Iwall pan and interior panel constructions and I assemblies,

Figs. and 11 show an alternative stud clamp construction, Fig: 10 being a side elevation partly broken away for compactness, and Fig. 11 being a transverse sectional view upon. the line ll-ll of Fig. 10,

Fig. 12 is a transverse sectional'view upon an I abscess with varying temperature conditions and this expansion and contraction will be taken up by I variation in the sharpness of the bend at ll enlarged scale as compared to Fig. 9 showing in greater detail the connection between the stud j clamps and the interior wall panel,

as compared to Figs. 9' and 12 showing the method of connection oi. the exterior wall pans and the assembly thereof upon a concrete base, Fig. 13 being a separated view and Fig. 14 being 1 Fig. 4).

- an assembled view showing the attachment to the base.

Fig. 15 is an alternative Referring to Figs l and 4 the usual construc- Referring to Fig. 4 the exterior wall pans B are held together by means of the stud.clamps ;G, which are mounted upon and connected to .Ithe floor pans H. The stud' clamps G, together with thechannel; bearing partitions I, carry the interior walls J. "g

Referring particularly to Figs. 13 and 14, the

1 wall pans B may be made in standard sizes or *of a variety of sizes, as for example in widths I interior. z -channei Iconstruction for separating and supporting the interior walls.

receive the bolts 22 having th polygonal heads of 2 or 4 feet so they may be readily varied in assembly to form the complete exterior wall construction.

ble dust, the particles of marble dust desirably varying from an average particle size of $6 to M3". The varnish may consist of various combinations of Glyptal resins, which are combinations of glycerol with phthalic anhydride and 1 other monoor poly-basic carboxylic acids,'such 1 as oleic, linoleic and dl-basic acids, such as maleic and so forth.

The cellulose ester preferablyused is a cellulose nitrate or nitrocellulose of low viscosity characteristics so that it may be readily sprayed through a gun.

These panels B are bent with a relatively I 3 and with wire conduit openings i4 (see also The stud clamps G have bases l5, inturned sections l8, parallel outwardly direct sections 1 H, which are slightly inclined away from each other for the purpose of resiliency, and outj turned outside flanges it.

The bend at I9 is preferably on a larger radius ;than the bend H. For example the bend ll maybe on an radius, whereas the bend l9 By providing the bend IS with a larger radius than the bend ll, provision is made for theexpansion and contraction of the wall pans B 5 sharp corner at H to form the flanges l2, which l flanges are provided with coinciding bolt holes and without tendency toopen up the joint formed by the stud clamp or vertical column G. This type of construction greatly relieves the strain encountered due to varying atmospheric conditions. v

The bolt holes'2i in said flanges H are designed to cooperate with the bolt holes I3 to 23 and the threaded shanks 24.

Washers 25 may be provided to receive the I .threaded shanks 24 and the ends, of the shanks after insertion in the holes l3 and 2| may be screwed into the nuts 26.

When the two flanges II are drawn up by the bolts 22 upon the flanges l 2, a very flrm rigid connection will be obtained, as indicated best in'Fig. 14. v

Referring to Fig. 14, it will be noted that the wall pans B at the base of the house or building construction have sections 21 extending below the upper level 28 of the concrete base A which are then turned upwardly as indicated at 29 and are provided with inturned flanges 30 which flt over the corners 3I- of said concrete base A. At its inside edge, the flange 30 is provided with an upturned flange portion 32. a

Itwill.be noted that the stud clamp-G rests on top of the flange 30, as indicated at 33 and 34 and the flange 32 is cut away at 33' toreceiv the back of the stud clamp G.

The cement foundation A, when cast, receives a series of angular bent retaining anchors or bolts 35 which are threaded at their upper ends, as indicated at 36, and receive the washers 31 and thenuts 38 to hold said wall'panels B rigidly in position. The openings 39 in the rear portions of the stud clamps G are for the purposeo'f receiving the interior wall structure, whether it be wood or metal panels or any desirabl type of lath while the openings 39 enable connection to the 'floor pans H.

Resting upon the concrete base A, attached to the lower portions of the stud clamps shown and positioned against the flanges 32 are the floor pans of the type shown in Fig.7.

,These floor pans are each provided with a base 40, with an upturned side flang 4| having the bolt holes 42 .and with the inturned flanges 43. Beneath the flanges 43 .are positioned wooden joist members 44 (see Fig. 6) which may serve as a means for attachment of the floor structure whether it ,be of metal or wood. If desired the floor pansmay also be filled. with concrete or mastic.

The ends of the walls 4| are provided with inturned flanges 45 which are provided with the bolt holes 46 and are aligned with the bolt holes 41 in'the ends ofthe flanges 48. 48 are turned up from the ends of the base of the pan to lie over the inturned flange portions 45. If desired, however, the flanges may be over the outside of the flange 48. These floor ans, as shown in Fig. 7 are bolted together by the bolts and the ends of the pans may be connected by the bolts 6| to the stud clamps G.

The floor pans are usually in two foot sections, as shown best in Fig. 5, and where the walls are four foot sections, it is usually desirable to providereinforcing channel members at two foot intervals, as indicated at 62, having the outside flanges 63 abutting the interior face of the base 10 of the wall pans A.

The flanges The central sections v or web sections of the.

channels 8I'may be spot welded or bolted together and the interior flanges 84-, as indicated in Fig.5, are bolted at 88 to the corner portionsor the floor pans, as shown in Fig. 7. v

The corner sections E, as best shown in Fig, 5,

the construction best shown in Fig. and they consist of two U-shaped members, the webs III of which'may be spot welded or bolted together, and the flanges .I I8 01 which arebolted,

have a quarter circular outside wall 88 'and the intumed anchor-flanges 81 which are attached y by the bolts .88 to the flanges 88 of the ,inside corner members K.

These inside corner membersK- are provided with the right angular return bend portions I8,

'theoutwardly turned flanges I8", the side fl nges.

I1 and II8, the rebent flange I I9 and the oblique I corner portion I28 having the oblique portion I2I one or both 01 which may be connected by bolts II to the corners of the floor pans, as shown in Fig. 7 and their corner flanges I2 may flt into the corners II of the wall pans G in the same manner as the flanges I8 01 the stud clamp G, as illustrated in Figs. 13 and 14.

Because of,the difliculty of access into the opening formed by the outside corner members E when the flanges I2, 81 and 89 are to be clamped together, special bolt constructions 88 are provided as best illustrated in Fig. 8.

These bolt constructions consist of a threaded member I3 having a right angular end portion 78, which is inserted through the washer I5 through openings in the flanges 61 and I2 and into the'tapped nut I8. If desired, instead of using hook bolts I8, nuts maybe welded at their corners onto the flanges 61.. This will overcome any diiflculties due to lack of accessibility.

The interior wall panels J maybe assembled with the stud clamps in the manner indicated .in Figs. 9 and 12.

These panels J may be provided with rela- I tively thin metal webs or bases 85, to the inside faces of which may be welded the upright flanges 88 of the angle bars 81. These flanges 8'! may be provided with extension portions 88 which.

have inwardly divergent slots 89 to receive the flanges 84 oi the reinforcing members 82 or the double flanges I5 and I8 of the stud clamps G (see particularly Figs. 9 and 12). I

The tongue 98 formed by the slot at the end 01' the enlarged portion 88 is of suflicient resiliency to be able to grip tightly either the flange I8--I8 of the stud clamp G or the single thick: ness flange 88 of the reinforcing channel 62.

The ends of the enlarged portion 88 of the flange are cut away, as indicated at 9|, to form a recess 92, in which is inserted the return bend portion 93 extending from the inwardly bent flange 98 of the interior wall panel 85. The adjacent wall panel 85 is also provided with an inwardly turned flange 95 which has. an outwardly turned flange 98 grasped by the return bend element 93 to form a rigid connection.

It will be noted that the interior edge 91 of ,and the straight leg portion I22. clamp adapts itself for many purposes more satisfactorily than the stud clamps shown inFigs. 13 and 14.

In lieu of the bearing partition I, shown in Figs. 4 and 5, it is also possible to use a bearing partition of the type illustrated in Fig. 15, having the single web I28 and the side flanges I2I together with the oblique connecting por- 'tionsl22.

The bottom flange I23 provided with the bolt hole I24 may extend'off the base web I20. The

the flange 88 abuts (see Fig. 12) the rear face oi the stud clamp G.

At the ends of the interior partitions extending between the rooms and adjacent the. exterior walls are positioned the special bearing partition channels L. These special bearing partition channels L are provided with the webs I I0 and with the side flanges III, one of said side flanges fitting into the recess 89 in said flange 88. The other side flange may be bolted or otherwise attached, as indicated at II3, to the reduced width portions 91 of one of said flanges 81.

The lower portion of the web III! is broken and the two sections are turned outwardly, as indicated at II8, to abut'the floor or roof pan H, as the case may be.

The intermediate channel partitions I are of flashing F, as best shown in Fig. 4, has a base I38 with the upturned side flanges I3I. The side flanges are turned over as indicated at. I32 to have the downwardly extending intermediate flange portions I33,

The upper portions of the wall pans B are turned inwardly at the top of the building or house, as indicated at I34, and have flange portions I35, which flt in back of the flanges I33. The coping band I 36 is provided with the downturned outside flange portion I31 and the downturned inside flange portion I38, the latter being bolted at I39 through the flange I 3| to the stud clamp G, as indicated best in Fig. 4.

The flange I31 is provided with a downturned portion I38 which extends over the inclined wall portion I34 and abuts the obliquely cut-01f edge I39 on the stud clamp G.

The flashing F is provided with mastic I40, which extends upwardly, as indicated at ill, to cover the bolts I39 and make ,a water-tight connection. I I

It is apparent that the dimensions of the component elements may be widely varied but it has been found most suitabl to form the exterior wall panels or pans in two foot or four foot widths.

The height of the wall pans, the stud clamps and the bearing partitions may vary between about 8' to 9' and, if desired, in certain instances the stud clamps for multi-story housesmay be made of the height of two stories, as for example, sixteen or eighteen feet. The windows and doors may be set in or attached to flanges pressed out of the webs of the wall pans.

In erecting the house the concrete foundation is first made and the anchor bolts are set in said foundation. The wall pans are then attached to these anchor bolts in the manner shown in Fig. 4 and the floor pans are set in position at about the same time.

The interior partitions, the interior bearing may also be inserted and placed in position at. the same time.

When the wall panels and the floor and roof pans are completely set, the electrical wiring and plumbingis placed in position before setting the interior partition walls, steel or ply-wood panels.

This stud which may consist of dicated by G in Figs. 1 to and 12 to 14, as

well as the structure shown in Fig. 11. These structures, as shown in Figs. 1 to 10 and 12 to 14 and also in Fig. 11, have an approximate T crws section. v

The invention however, is not intended to be restricted to any particular arrangement of prefabricated house construction, or to any particu- -lar application of any-such construction, or to any specific method of operation, or'manner of After the exterior walls and bearing partitions I are lined, they are filled with vermiculite or other insulating material by pouring this matesaid Qstud clamps, said flashing structure consisting of a relatively flat base with upturned side flanges, forming a receptor for mastic and flanges extending downwardly from the edges of said side flanges to engage and cover the top of the wall pans and stud clamps.

4. In a pre-i'abrlcated building-construction, a plurality of exterior wall pans, a plurality of .-interior wall panels, a plurality of integrally constructed stud clamps having, plate members embracing saidinturned abutting flangesand having transverse plates at their interior ends,

said stud clamps holding said exterior wall panels together and angle bar members attached to the rear of said wall panels to engage the transverse plates at the inside ends of said stud clamps.

' 5. A pre-fabricated building construction comprising a plur'alltyof exterior wall pans a plu-- rality of interior wall panels and means ior'connecting said exterior wall pans and said interior wall panels together, comprising stud clamps, in-

- tegral in construction, attached to the exterior use, or to any of various details thereof, herein shown and described, as the same may be modifled in various particulars or be applied in many varied relations without departing from th spirit and scope of the claimed invention, the practical embodiments herein illustrated and described merely showing some of the various features entering into the application of the invention.

Whatis claimed is:

1. A pre-iabricated building. construction comprising a plurality of floor and roof pans and a plurality of exterior wall pans, saidv pans being boltedtogether to form the house construction, all of which ar provided with inturned abutting flanges and means to hold said flanges together, the inturned abutting flanges oi the wall pans extending transversely inwardly from the bases of said wall pans substantially the full depth of w said walls and closely abutting over their entire length and width, and the means to hold said last-mentioned abutting flanges together consisting oi elongated stud clamps taking the form of a T and serving as vertical beams, said T's having stem portion also formed of closely spaced parallel flanges, which closely abut and flt against throughout their entire length, the exterior faces of said last-mentioned inturned abutting flanges and which are provided at their head portions with means for carrying an interior wall structure and at' their foot portions with outturned end flanges contacting the inside faces of the exterior wall pans, and said outbolts carrying the return bent portions of said wall pans and clip members attached to the interior wall panels and to th stud clamps, said stud clamps consisting of elongated clamp members of T-shaped cross section, the stems of said stud clamps consisting of two members which embrace and press together said inturned abut ting flanges and the transverse end portions of which stud clamp members engage said clip members.

v6. In a pre-fabricated building construction, I comprising a concrete base, return bend flangesat the bottom of the wall structures, exterior wall pans forming the wall structures and anchor exterior wall pans the exterior faces of said wall pans extending substantially below the top of said concrete base and said return bentflanges being 011 cross section with right angular bends so as to closely flt and abut the edges of said concrete base.

'1. A pre-fabricated building construction comprising a plurality of floor and roof pans and 5 a plurality of exterior and interiorwall pans,

all of which ar provided with inturned abutting flanges and means to hold said flanges together including a plurality of stud clamps, said stud clamps gripping said abutting flanges and having outturned portions which extend across and a have a lesser curvature than the bends-forming said inturned flanges.

8. Apre-fabricated building construction comprising a plurality of interior and exterior wall turned end flanges being turned outwardly updrilfili pans. a plurality f 1 1 nd f D ns, a D111-v a greater radius than. the inturned abutting flanges of the wall pans are turned inwardly, whereby said wall pans may be drawn together with said stud clamps to form a tightly braced structure.

2. A pre-fabricated building construction comprising a plurality of wall pans, a plurality of floor and roof pans, saidpans being bolted together to form the house construction, a plurality of stud clamps holding said wall pans together and attached to said floor pans and a flashing structure bolted to the top portions of said stud clamps.

3. A pre-fabricated building construction comprising a plurality of wall pans, a plurality of floor and roof pans, said pans being bolted together to form the house construction, a plurality of stud clamps holding said wall pans together and attached to said floor pans and a uilty of stud clamps holding said wall pans together and attached to said floor and roof pansand a flashing structure bolted to the top portions of said stud clamps, the edges of said so flashing structureand of said stud clamps being pan to engage and cover the top of the wall pans and stud clamps, and coping bands enclosing the upper edges of the flashing and wall pans.

flashing structure bolted to the top portions of 10. In a ph d i g construction,

a plurality of exterior flanged wall pans, a plurality of interior wall panels, a plurality of stud clamps holding said exterior wall panels together,

angle bar members attached to the rear of said wall panels having recessed portions to engage the inside ends of said stud clamps and interlocking clip means on the adjacent edges of said interior panels. a

11. A pre-fabricated building construction comprising a plurality of exterior wall pans, a plurality of interior wall panels and means for connecting said exterior wall pans and said interior wall panels together, comprising stud clamps attached to the exterior wall pans and slotted angle elements and clip members attached to the interior wall panels and to the stud clamps, said clip members consisting of sheet metal members forming a tongue and socket connection abutting the inside faces of said stud clamps and engaging said slotted angle elements.

12. In a pre-fabricated building construction comprising a concrete base, recessed return 2- bend flanges at the bottom of the wall structures, exterior wall pans forming the wall structures and anchor bolts carrying the return bent portions of said exterior wall pans, and stud clamps holding said pans together and fitting in said recesses.

13. In a prefabricated building construction comprising a concrete base, recessed return Z- bend flanges at the bottom of the wall structures, exterior wall pans forming the wall structures and anchor bolts carrying the return bent portions of said exterior wall pans, and stud clamps I holding said pans together and fitting in said recesses, said exterior wall pans having inturned abutting flanges and said stud clamps gripping said inturned abutting flanges and thereby holding said pans together.

14. In a prefabricated building construction, a floor pan comprising a rectangular base, upturned flanges from each edge of said base, said upturned flanges on opposite sides of said pan being provided with bent side extensions o overlap the edges of the remaining two upturned flanges, said two opposite upturned flanges being provided with inturned flanges at their upper edges, and wooden beam members fitting under said inturned flanges to enable attachment of a floor structure. I

15. In a prefabricated building construction, a roof pan comprising a flat base member, upturned side flanges, the upper edges of which upturned side flanges are turned outwardly and then downwardly to fit over the top of the wall structure.

16. In a. prefabricated building construction, an integrally constructed roof pan comprising a flat base member, upturnedv side flanges, the

upper edges of which upturned side flanges are. 60

turned outwardly and then downwardly to flt over the top of the wall structure and the wall structure including a plurality of bolted together wall pans having inwardly and upwardly extending obliquely disposed upper portions.

17. In a prefabricated building construction, a roof construction including inwardly obliquely and then vertically upwardly directed exterior vertical wall pan portions, an integral roof pan comprising a flat base member, upturned side flanges, the upper edges of which upturned side flanges are turned outwardly and then downwardly to fit over the top of the wall pan 5 portions.

18. In a prefabricated building construction, a roof construction including inwardlyobliquely and then vertically upwardly directed exterior vertical wall pan portions, an integral roof pan comprising a flat base member, upturned side flanges, the upper edges of which upturned side flanges are turnedoutwardly and then downwardly to fit over the top of the wall pan portions, a cap extending over and enclosing said wall pan portions and said upturned side flanges of the roof pan. p

19. In a prefabricated, building construction, a plurality of vertical side wall pans having inturned abutting side flanges and vertical beams consisting of stud clamps, integral in construc- 1 tion, having a transverse head and side abutting members embracing said abutting side flanges, said side abutting members having outturned edges touching theinterior faces of said side wall pans, said inturned abutting flanges being positioned closely again-st one another'and extending substantially the full depth of the walls and said side abutting members also positioned closely parallel to one another and pressing against the exterior faces of said abutting side flanges, the transverse heads of said vertical beams having means to carry the interior wall construction, the outturned edges of said side abutting members being curved on a greater radius than the inturned portion of the abutting side flanges, whereby said wall pans and said stud clamps may be drawn tightly together to form a braced structure.

20. In a prefabricated building construction, a plurality of vertical side wall pans having inturned abutting side flanges and vertical beams consisting of stud clamps, integral in construction, having a transverse head and side abutting members embracing said abutting side flanges,

ing flanges extending downwardly in front and in back of' said upper edges of said exterior wall. 22. In a prefabricated building construction of sheet steel sections, a plurality of steel sections forming the upper out-side face of the exterior wall, the upper portions thereof being inclined inwardly and obli uely at the top of the exterior wall and a cap flashing extending over the upper edges of said exterior wall and having flanges 5 extending downwardly in front and in back of said upper edges of said exterior, wall, the inside edge of said cap flashing being covered by water proofing plastic composition. WILLIAM VAN ALEN. 

